An incredible goal from Ramon Nuñez deep into second-half stoppage time gave FC Dallas a dramatic 2-1 victory against the Columbus Crew at Pizza Hut Park on Wednesday and moved them back into second place in the Western Conference.
With a playoff spot locked up and the first home game since the marathon trip to California last week, the Hoops were a flat team for much of the match. But down a goal at the half, FC Dallas finally cashed in on numerous chances throughout the game to come away with a victory and officially eliminate the Crew from the postseason contention.
A 17th-minute strike from David Testo gave the Crew the lead, but Bobby Rhine's volley in the 57th minute pulled the Hoops back to level. Nuñez then put the match away with an emphatic strike from 30 yards out in stoppage time to give Dallas the win.
Jamal Sutton, making just his sixth start of the year, brought loads of pace and a fearlessness in the Crew attack alongside Edson Buddle, causing some problems for Steve Jolley and Drew Moor in the FCD central defense.
After an early flurry of chances from both teams, Columbus got on the board first. Chris Henderson sent in a nice cross from the left flank toward Buddle, who was tightly marked by Jolley. The ball bounced off their duel to Testo at the back post, and he brought the ball down with his chest before calmly potting his shot past Scott Garlick for his first goal of the campaign.
Ronnie O'Brien, Mark Wilson and Nuñez worked the Hoops midfield with precision but struggled to find the last connecting pass in their attacking third early on.
The most promising chance of the first half for the Hoops came in the 32nd minute as Nuñez was all alone in the box at point blank range only to have his shot cleared off the line by Testo to preserve the Crew's lead.
To end the half Buddle nearly doubled the lead for his team as he beat Rhine in a footrace before he was able to sidestep an oncoming Garlick, only for his shot to tag the right goal post and trickle out of play.
The Hoops fought back valiantly in the second half and it paid off as Rhine got on the end of an errant Robin Fraser clearance which he took out of the air with an audacious volley that had the arc of a curveball to easily beat the Crew's Jonny Walker in the 57th minute.
Buddle and Sutton utilized their speed throughout the second half to stretch the Dallas defense but to no avail as the Hoops soaked up the counterattack and controlled the ball for long stretches.
One of the more promising opportunities towards game's end was by way of a Rhine cross from the right side which found Wilson, and he made a overhead swipe at the cross only for his shot to sail wide.
The Crew then nearly snatched the victory at the end, Buddle collecting the ball in the left side of the area and curling a perfectly angled shot that left Garlick no chance -- only for it to again come right off the face of the woodwork.
FC Dallas raced to the other end, and when it seemed as if the attack would peter out, the ball took a fortunate deflection off a Crew defender. Nuñez raced forward and let loose a bomb from all of 25 yards that swerved past Walker for the unthinkable victory.
MLSnet.com Man of the Match: Ramon Nuñez (FC Dallas)
Scott Joiner is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
